Poppies!

A poppy burst open this morning in our studio garden. 
It's been said that one can actually hear the sound of a poppy opening...a subtle little "pop!" 
One thing's for sure, they do make a grand entrance!
A poppy opens up with such bright faced joy, and summer surprise in its petals, that we've wondered if it silently plans the explosive, celebratory debut for weeks ahead, inside its fuzzy little head?  

That little head must swirl around with thoughts of celebration, joy and gratitude...and it's probably because the poppy has its mind set on right things, on good things, on the beauty that is to come in its life.

This poppy unfolded a few thoughts in us today. Thoughts about the same joy, the same celebration, that we can hold in our hearts, as we, like the poppy, set-our-minds-on-good things, good thoughts and promises spoken directly to our hearts by God.
 
We know that when we let our thoughts, inspired by God, swirl around in our heads and hearts, we too, like this fresh-faced poppy, will be able to lift our heads and be filled with a joy, a gratitude, that simply overflows and kind of "pops" out into our own worlds.

So today, we'll be looking at the poppy party going on and letting our hearts join in with lovely thoughts like this...
"Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of The Lord rises upon you."
Isaiah 60:1

Enjoying the party in the garden and in our hearts,
The Velvet Lime Girls

HOPE

Hope is sunshine for the soul. ©

With the Memorial Day weekend about to begin, our thoughts are already bobbing out to sea with images of the beach, and the sand-salt-and-sunny-serenity about to roll in with summer.  Actually, it's not technically summer yet, but here in
the south, summer begins on Memorial Day, as we slip into white shorts, sip on sweet tea and inhale the first breezes of summer. Life just lightens up with the very thought of summer!


Summery thoughts are a bit like hope.  
That beautiful gift from God that lifts our hearts up to a puffy, white cloud level. Carrying the expectation, the anticipation, the belief, that God will really come along to be with us, help us, and never leave us.  When God gives you hope, it's as if He breathes His powerful-life-giving-breath into the very chambers of your heart ... fully inflating you to live again. Life just lightens up with the very thought of hope!

Hope was the inspiration for this artwork recently created in our studio. We are thrilled that Divinity selected it to grace the cover of their upcoming catalog. For those of you who are retailers, please visit their website below.  
http://www.divinitywholesale.com/Scripts/PublicSite/


We hope you'll slip into this weekend with hope shining bright in your heart,
The Velvet Lime Girls

Details

Pause for just a minute today as the weekend begins and soak up a little inspiration from our studio garden. 
                                                         
Columbine hats dancing in the breeze.                 
   
       
Geranium buds lifting their heads with gratitude.
                       
Stamens shouting praise. 
                   
And pansy faces glowing bright with hope.

The details spinning around us in the garden are enough to make us dizzy!  Details, details, details ... everywhere!
                       
Reminders of the delight God finds in the details of our lives. How amazing...the creator of this magnificent garden actually delights in us.  
                                        
Just listen to the way it's expressed in this ancient sentiment: 
"...God delights in every detail of our lives"  Psalm 37:23
 New Living Translation

Living in His delight,
The Velvet Lime Girls 

Inhale Grace, Exhale Praise

A phrase from a song captured our hearts recently and when we glanced at this dogwood blossom with it's "heart" open wide, breathing in grace, and exhaling a "praise" of sorts with its outstretched petals, we just had to share it with you all! 

It beautifully captured the essence of what we hope our lives will be...beautiful displays of our Heavenly Father, living our lives with hearts open to Him, breathing in all of the Grace He gives and then pouring out a life of continual praise to Him through everything we do!

Inhale Grace, Exhale Praise,
The Velvet Lime Girls

"He taught me how to sing the latest God-song, 
a praise-song to our God."  
Psalm 40:3  

A Creative Life

"There are souls in this world which have the gift of finding joy everywhere and leaving it behind them when they go."  
Frederick William Faber

We've loved this beautiful quote ever since it rippled softly into our hearts a few years ago.  We even used it in a previous blog to describe three tiny loved ones:
http://velvetlimedesign.blogspot.com/2012/01/joy.html     

Today, the quote resurfaced as we recalled a random meeting of a very gifted artist named Debbie Saenz.
https://www.facebook.com/ACreativeLife

We were touched by her as much as we were her lovely art,  and because we believe beautiful things are meant to be shared, we had planned to do an artist spotlight on her in the future. And then we let time slip this lovely idea away from us. It kind of bobbed out to sea. Out, out, out, into the busy ocean of life, and it almost sailed away.  But creatives like this, just never leave you. Their art comes ebbing back onto your shores, like a treasured message in a bottle.

So today, let us uncork some of the art treasures created by this amazing artist.  The piece below caught our eyes immediately with Valentine's Day just around the corner. It'd be great for an upcoming wedding or anyone touched by LOVE. It just makes us smile:-)

We also have been inspired by these works of art that would be perfect for a wedding gift or a special couple.

And this petite art on a necklace reminds us who we are.

There's just so much to show in this artist's portfolio, but we'll close with this fresh as a breeze painting, reminding us that the windows of spring will open again soon.

Inspired by another creative,
The Velvet Lime Girls

You can see more of Debbie's creations in her Etsy shop at: https://www.etsy.com/shop/DebbieSaenz?ref=l2-shopheader-name

Atlanta Snow

It snowed in Atlanta a couple of days ago, settling into our world and studio garden with a shimmering, white drape that lounged over tree limbs, moss, and fences.

                                                           

                                                                      

Even our bird houses slipped under snowy embellishments.

And tree boughs cradled the white wonder with gentle embraces.

                                                                

It was a silent, serene covering of grace that seemed to soften everything that was hard, ugly and beat-up underneath.

Outside our studio garden though, the world was seeing a different picture of Atlanta.

This snowfall ushered in one of the biggest traffic jams in history for our city and tales of unimaginable challenges have sifted in today in a steady stream. Cars, stalled for hours, filled with mothers, fathers, children, babies, elderly, handicapped, sick and hungry have shivered along the roadways throughout the night and into this day. The 7 hour drive home, normally 15 minutes, by one of our own, pales in comparison to what others endured last night. 

And yet, in the midst of all this misery, we've heard reports of grace that, like this snow, seem to soften some of the hard moments people have endured. Stories of people bringing water, food, and supplies to stranded drivers, of others opening up their homes to strangers for a place to rest and warm up, of restaurants closing their cash registers and serving food to the hungry, of Dads and Moms walking miles to be with their children stranded at schools overnight, of devoted teachers staying with students throughout the night, and of a gentle soul who created a facebook page that helped so many. You just have to read the stories @ Snowed Out Atlanta 

The list goes on an on with these random acts of kindness that settled in between some of the very hard spots, and very hard moments that have occurred in Atlanta these last two days.

It's as if GRACE has just wrapped itself around our city through these acts of kindness. Softening some of the rough, hard edges of the lives stretched out on these roads. And right smack in the middle of it, as if to remind us all of how powerful GRACE can be, a baby was born, on one of these treacherous stretches of road. In harsh, cold conditions, the grace of God came down, covering all the things that weren't perfect, and allowed a beautiful, tender, little baby girl to be born. Perfectly.

And her name? Why, it's Grace, of course.  

To remind us of God's grace, that softly falls and covers hard places with unexpected beauty. 
Read more about little Grace here:

http://t.today.com/moms/it-was-beautiful-baby-born-atlanta-area-roadside-during-snowstorm-2D12014602

Praying for those affected by the snow,

Grateful for those who made it home,

The Velvet Lime Girls

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”  2 Corinthians 12:9

Iris Inspiration

Dutch irises have been dancing around our studio this week. These purple-hued ballerinas, twirling and stretching, with demi-pliés, pirouettes and artful arabesques, have been gently spilling out of our studio vases. It's enough to cause us to start executing a perfect glissade across our studio drawing tables! 

These petite irises really know who they are, they know the hands, the "fingers" that have made them, and they bear the unmistakable mark of their creator. 

You'll never find one of these creations displaying a poor self image, feeling worthless or giving-in to a bad day. They have the very life of God in them. His hands have made them, shaped them, and they bear the mark of their creator, right down to the very last, tiny detail.

 How could they not celebrate, with the value, the worth, the love that's been given to them?

Their exquisite display of beauty is a mere shadow of the value, the worth, the love that God has showered on each of us.  He tells us we are "wonderfully created" and that His thoughts about us are so vast, that if we counted them, they'd "outnumber the grains of sand".

You really should just jump up right now and do a little pirouette, as you read this love letter excerpt that is written to you.  He's totally smitten with you.  When you're loved like this, (and you really know it, and receive it), ... you can dance everyday, regardless of your surroundings.

So, take a cue from these irises. Lift your head up, stretch your arms out wide and let that "crown of glory and honor" you've been given shine in your world today.

Inspired by the irises,
The Velvet Lime Girls